


I Told You, I’m Done With All That

by Lady_Felucia



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Star Wars Fusion, Armitage Hux Has Issues, Armitage Hux Needs A Hug, Beginning of a Beautiful Friendship, Ben Solo Needs A Hug, Developing Relationship, Eventual Fluff, Feelings Realization, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Gay Male Character, I Ship It, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Kylux - Freeform, LGBTQ Themes, M/M, One True Pairing, Romantic Fluff, Short & Sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-08
Updated: 2019-07-08
Packaged: 2020-06-24 02:46:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,077
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19714702
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lady_Felucia/pseuds/Lady_Felucia
Summary: Armitage Hux’s life is finally back on track. He’s got a new job, new apartment, and best of all, he’s finally gotten rid of the lowlife boyfriend that’s been causing him nothing but pain for the past few years. Being one to learn from his mistakes, Hux declares to his best friend that he’s giving up on the dating game for good ...... but it seems like the strange guy he keeps bumping into has other thoughts, on the matter.





	I Told You, I’m Done With All That

“I am absolutely, positively, 100% done with men,” he announced, before taking another chug on his beer. Actually, there wasn’t enough left in the bottle for a ‘chug’; so he quickly polished off the remains before signaling the bartender for another.

“Oh, really?,” the woman next to him, his best friend since middle school, asked. “So you’ve decided to branch out into women, then?”

He shook his head, smiling as the bartender set down another bottle in front of him. 

“Nope. I’m done with the whole thing. The worrying, the stress, the hugging and kissing and the sex, the regret, _everything_. From now on, I’m a robot.”

The woman, Phasma, raised an eyebrow and took another sip of her glass of wine. “Okay but ... you DO know that there are sex robots out there, right?”

“Well, I’m not one of those. I’m just a normal robot. Eat, drink, sleep, work, repeat. That’s all I’m going to allow to take up my time and my energy anymore. Well, except for YOU, of course.”

Phasma rolled her eyes. “How thoughtful.”

It was a Saturday night in early November, and Armitage Hux and Phasma were at Eisley’s, a small bar and grill located about a mile from Hux’s apartment. Tonight was a mini-celebration, of sorts: after a whole year of agonizing, of pain and stress and suffering, Hux had finally broken up with his dirtbag of a boyfriend.

Hence, his love-free declaration tonight. Granted, it came at the end of about 9 beers and a couple sips of Phasma’s (ONE glass of) wine, but to Hux, it felt long-overdue.

“Think about it, Phas; in ten years of being ‘out’, I’ve had maybe 4 boyfriends. Each one worse than the last. Clearly, it’s a sign; I’m an idiot who can’t choose a decent partner to save my life. So it’s time to just give it up.”

“Oh, come on, Hux. Yeah you’ve picked some bad ones, but that doesn’t mean that Prince Charming isn’t out there still.”

“I love your optimism,” Hux told her, reaching over to pat her shoulder, “But you’re wrong. I’m done. From now on, my hand is gonna be my ‘romantic fulfillment’. There’s less shame in jerking off than there is in being with someone who makes you look like a fool, right?”

“Ew,” Phasma replied, scrunching up her face. “TMI, babe.”

She pulled her purse up onto the counter, saying “Let’s pay up and get out of here, okay?”

Hux gently slapped her hands away from her purse, pulling out his own wallet and saying, “No, I’m paying. You were sweet enough to come out here with me, after all.”

Phasma smiled and shrugged. “What are friends for?”

Hux paid, and they began heading towards the door. Hux was a bit wobbly on his feet (he had never been one to hold his liquor very well), and had hold of Phasma’s arm for extra support. Right before they got to the door, however, Hux stumbled over a loose tile on the floor, and half-bumped into this man walking in.

“Shit, sorry,” he mumbled, reflexively putting out his hand to right the man, as Hux’s bump had jarred him a bit. “You okay?”

“No worries,” the man replied, and his deep voice caused Hux to look up for the first time. The man was wearing all black; black slacks, a black polo shirt, and a black, slightly scuffed apron that was slung over his shoulder. He didn’t have a coat or even a hoodie, which Hux thought was a bit odd, as it was technically early winter (even though there wasn’t any snow on the ground, the temperature was still quite chilly). His hair was black, too, a rich ebony of tousled waves that ended just above the base of his neck. At first glance his eyes appeared black, as well; but once the dim lights of the bar hit them, they were revealed to be a deep brown, with tiny flecks of green. His skin was pale, offset by little dark moles sprinkled irregularly all over his face and neck. His lips were dark red, and unusually full, for a man. And they were curved up into a smile, as he said, “Todd’s special punch can really mess you up.”

Huh. So he was apparently a regular here (although this was the first Hux had seen him), and was on a first-name basis with the bartender.

“He didn’t have the punch,” Phasma interjected, pulling on her coat. “Just beer.”

“Ah. Well, that can be powerful, too. You guys have a good rest of your night.”

“You, too,” Phasma and Hux answered together, before stepping out into the night.

“Holy crap,” Phasma said when they reached her car. “That guy was h-o-t HOT!”

“Who?”

“The guy you just smacked into, dummy! Didn’t you get a good look at him?!”

Hux just shook his head, and climbed into Phasma’s back seat. The booze was hitting him in full force now, making him dizzy and tired. “I told you, I’m done with all that. Hey, wake me up when we get to my place, Okay?”

“What the hell? Your place is only 10 minutes away! You don’t need to go to —“

But it was too late; Hux had already passed out, curled up peacefully on Phasma’s back seat.

— — 

“Looks like we meet again.”

Hux glanced up, and his face contorted in momentary confusion. This guy ... why did he seem so familiar? Had Hux met him somewhere before?

It was several days later, and Hux had popped into a small bookstore that he’d discovered a couple of months ago, to see if they had the release of the latest Stephen King book. It was a popular one; every major bookstore in town had already sold out of it. He’d asked the lady at the counter, and had been told that the book was on back-order, but told Hux he could add his name to the waiting list, and they’d reserve a copy for him.

After filling out the paperwork, he headed to the small coffee bar towards the back of the store, and the barista had brightened up, as if he KNEW Hux.

As if reading his thoughts, the man went on: “I ran into you a few nights ago, at Eisley’s. Or I should say, you and your girlfriend ran into ME.”

“Oh,” Hux said sheepishly, running his hand through his hair. “S-sorry about that, uh —“

“Ben,” the man said, extending his hand. “Benjamin Lucas Solo, to be exact.”

“Ben, then. I’m Hux. Armitage Hux. Oh ... and that girl wasn’t my girlfriend. Just a friend,” he added, as an afterthought.

“I see. Okay, Armitage Hux. No middle name?”

“Nope. My father doesn’t believe in middle names.”

Hux looked around; other than himself, there were no customers in line for the coffee bar. What few people were in here were spread out, lounging in the comfortable chairs or couches, quietly reading or perusing their laptops.

“So what’ll you have, Armitage Hux?”

“Hux. And I don’t know; I’m not really a coffee drinker but I need a little caffeine boost; I start work in about an hour.”

“Hm. Well we have a variety of caffeinated teas; maybe that’s more your thing. How does a strawberry chai tea sound?”

“Really good, actually,” Hux said, smiling. Interesting; not many people correctly pegged him as a tea drinker. And out of the variety of flavors listed, Ben had chosen strawberry, Hux’s favorite flavor for practically everything.

“So where do you work?”, Ben asked him, as he set to work making Hux’s drink.

“You know that new bank on fourth and Grand? I work there.”

“A teller?”

“No. I’m the guy people talk to when they want loans for stuff. Well, I’m the first guy they talk to. If I approve them, then they go to another person, then the bank manager.”

Ben set the finished drink down in front of him, frowning. “Sounds stressful.”

“I’d say so. Anytime someone has to ask to borrow money is pretty stressful.”

“Oh, I didn’t mean for the borrowers, I meant for YOU.”

“Huh?”

“You seem like a really nice person, the kind who has trouble saying ‘no’ to people. So your job must be hard.”

Hux didn’t quite know how to respond to that. Nice? How would this guy know whether Hux was nice or not?

When Hux pulled out his wallet, Ben waved his hand and said, “No, no; it’s on the house.”

“What? Er, no, that’s okay. I mean that’s nice of you but I wouldn’t want you to get in trouble with your boss,” Hux said, pulling a $10 bill from his wallet and holding it out to Ben.

But Ben shook his head again, saying, “Its okay. Really; I never get in trouble. Trust me. But if you insist on paying ...”

“ ... yeah?”

“Uh, um, you can ... you can give me your phone number,” Ben said, his face a fiery red.

Hux was quiet for a long while, staring at this strange man. 

“What?”

“Your phone number. I assume you have one; you were looking at a cellphone screen before you walked over here.”

Wait ... was this guy like, trying to _flirt_ with him? 

Seriously?

“Ben,” Hux began, speaking slowly to gather his thoughts, “You ... seem really nice, too. But, if I’m being totally honest; I’m not looking to get into anything right now. I literally JUST got out of a relationship, like 2 weeks ago, so —“

“Shit, I’m sorry,” Ben said, backing slightly away from the counter. “That was awkward as hell, wasn’t it?”

He picked up a box sitting on the floor, mumbling something about having to take it into the kitchen. 

“Well, it was nice to meet you anyway, Hux. Have a good day at work, okay?”, he said, with a smile, before disappearing into the back.

Hux stood there for a few moments more, feeing guilty. Although the guy was incredibly good looking, that interaction had given Hux the impression that maybe Ben was the shy type.

 _It must have been hard for him, to ask me for my number like that,_ Hux thought as he walked away, absently sipping his tea. _Maybe I should go back and apologize for being rude ..._

But no.  
He couldn’t do that.

Ben had been correct, in surmising that Hux was the type who had difficulty saying No to others. If he went back, he’d break down and give Ben his number, which would lead to a date, which would spiral into yet another painful, harmful relationship.

And Hux was _done_ with all of that.

So he continued out of the shop and to his car, to head to work.

— —

Hux stood outside of his car in the dark, finishing up a text to Phasma before heading inside.

It was several days later, around midnight, and Hux had been woken up out of bed by the loud rumbling of his stomach.

As was often the case when Hux got hungry, he had a particular food in mind, and nothing else would do: pancakes. He didn’t have any pancake mix in his cabinets, however, and the only place he could go and get them ready-made was Denny’s, which was open 24 hours.

So he got himself dressed and headed out. He had texted Phasma to see if she’d join him, but she had groggily replied back “Jeez Hux just go to bed!”; so he was here by himself. He was lucky; only two other cars were in the parking lot, meaning that he probably wouldn’t have to wait long for his food.

When he walked in, he was greeted by the host (looking half-asleep himself), who started to lead him to a table ... when a voice called out from somewhere beyond them “Hey, Hux! Come join me!”

Oh, no.

Hux turned slowly, and was met with the sight of that guy, Ben, _again_. He was sitting at a corner table by himself, a small mountain of half-empty plates in front of him.

“Is that your friend? Would you like to sit with him?”, the host asked, stifling a yawn. Hux just nodded; what point would it be in resisting now?

Ben straightened up as Hux sat across from him, a wide smile on his face. The host gave Hux a menu and took his drink order, before leaving with some of Ben’s used plates.

“So are you stalking me or something?,” Hux asked, as he opened up his menu.

“Actually I think it’s the other way around. Twice now you’ve shown up at a place where I was at first. I’ve only done that to you once.”

“Fair point,” Hux said, unable to help a smile. “It’s pretty late, though; what are you doing here now?”

“Just got off work, was starving, and my fridge is sadly empty, so here I am.”

“Do you eat like a behemoth all the time? If so, I can see why your fridge is empty.”

Ben laughed, a deep, pleasant laugh, and the sound of it made Hux smile again. 

“Can’t help it; I’m a growing boy.”

“How come you’re at work so late? Does the bookstore carry such late hours?”

Ben shook his head, and took a sip of his soda, before answering: “Nah. But we had inventory, and I had to help with that, so —“

“They make the barista help with store inventory? Seems like a lot of work,” Hux commented, right as the waiter brought his drink. He ordered the pancakes, eggs and bacon combo, and the waiter collected his menu (and more of Ben’s plates) and left again.

“I guess, but you can’t really say no to your mom, right?”

“Mom?”

“Yeah. The lady who works behind the counter, the one you talk to when you first come in, is my mom. She’s the owner.”

“Huh,” Hux said, playing with the straw in his drink. “Never would have guessed that. Well, that must be nice, working for family, right?”

Ben laughed again. “You’d think so, but really, it’s a lot of headaches. She doesn’t treat me any different from the other employees. I still get minimum wage, I still get yelled at if I screw up. But, I dunno, I feel guilty if I’m not there, to help.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. See it was her and my dad’s store, but he died last year, and since then, she’s been kinda lost. I think it makes her feel better to have me around, you know?”

“I’m sorry to hear about your dad,” Hux said quietly, looking down into his drink. “I think it’s really nice of you to be helping your mom, though.”

“Thanks. Hey, can I ask you something?”

“Yeah?”

“You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to.”

“What is it?”

“Um, well, the other day — I tried to ask for your number, but you said no. Is it REALLY because you just got out of a relationship, or is it because I’m not like, your type?”

The waitress came out with Hux’s food, setting the steaming plates down in front of him. When she left, Hux opened up a packet of butter and began spreading it on his pancakes, before answering,

“No, that was the truth. Just broke up with him a couple of weeks ago. And I don’t really have a ‘type’, unless you count douchebags. I mean I GUESS that’s my type, considering every guy I date turns out to be one.”

“Do you only date guys, then? Because that girl, the one you said was just a friend ... she was gorgeous. I think she was one of the most beautiful people I’ve ever seen.”

Hux grinned and took a bite of his pancakes, pleased at how soft they were. “I’ll tell her that; she’ll be thrilled. But no, I only date guys. She’s just been my best friend since like, 7th grade.”

He looked up at Ben, who was nibbling at a piece of bacon from his own plate. “What about you? What’s your deal?”

“Oh, uh ... it’s kinda complicated. So I dated girls my whole life, right? But like, everything about it just felt wrong. Even holding hands felt wrong. But then one day I was at a bar, by myself, and this guy sits next to me and starts talking to me. Actually took me like an hour to figure out he was _hitting_ on me. But once I figured it out, and realized that I liked it ... that was it. It was like a puzzle piece connected in my brain. But that was it, that one time. Like I never had that happen again, and anytime I try and talk to a guy first, I don’t really know what to say, and I get rejected.”

Seriously, what the hell was going on here? How did Hux go from wanting pancakes to sitting and having a semi-deep conversation about life and sexual preference with a guy he didn’t really know, and had more or less turned down as a possible romantic endeavor once?

“You should try having some confidence,” Hux told him now, starting in on his eggs. “Sometimes if you ACT like you’re awesome, even if you don’t believe that, then other people start to believe it. And YOU start believing it, as well.”

“Really?”

“Mm hm. And aim high. Find the most handsome, smartest, nicest man in the universe, go up to him, and ask him out. And don’t use cheesy lines, and don’t chicken out; and above all, be persistent.”

Then he sighed, and laid down his fork.

“Then again, I’m the last person you should be taking advice from on this, Ben. My last boyfriend stole from me, bad-mouthed me to friends, and even cheated on me ... and I STILL took almost a full year to get rid of him. Clearly I know nothing about how dating should work.”

Ben was quiet for awhile, pushing around his now-cold hash browns with his fork. Then suddenly, he straightened up, looked Hux in the eye, and said,

“Hux.”

“Yeah?”

“After this, if you’re not very tired, or if you don’t work early ... you wanna come back to my place? We can watch a movie, or play video games, or something?”

A beat of silence, and then Hux burst into laughter. It was loud enough to attract the attention of the sole other diner, who looked over at them curiously.

“Jesus, Ben! Did you listen to anything I just told you?!”

“Yes! You said find the handsomest dude in the place, look him in the eye, and ask him out. And to be persistent; which would be a lot easier to do, if I had your phone number.”

Hux started to laugh again, this time holding his sides for support. The waitress came out, with two separate checks for them, which she laid on the table.

Ben had to be joking, calling Hux handsome. Especially when Ben himself sat there looking like some kind of God. But despite all of that, there was something about being in Ben’s presence that was ... soothing. Comfortable. As if Hux could say anything to him, and truly be himself. 

All of that, but still ...

_It started off like this with your last boyfriend, too, Hux. Get away. NOW._

“Ben ... I really have to get going,” Hux said, pulling out his wallet. He laid out two 20’s, enough to cover both his and Ben’s meals, and another $7 for a tip. “Thank you for a lovely conversation, but ... I’m still not interested. Ok?”

Ben nodded, looking somber. “Okay. I understand.”

Hux started to walk away, then he turned and came back, looking Ben in the face as he told him, “You’re aware that you’re like, a 10, right? I mean looks alone would put you at 10, but your sweet personality puts you over, so really, you’re like an 11, or 12. You can reach out and take anyone you want.”

“Not _anyone_ , apparently,” Ben answered, looking down at the table. “But thanks. That nice of you to say.”

Hux wanted to say more, but decided that he’d done enough damage. So he turned and walked out, not looking back until he reached his car.

— —

“What’s wrong with you?”

Hux looked up from his task, frowning at being interrupted. It was several weeks after the pancake incident, and Hux and Phasma were spending a lazy Wednesday afternoon at Hux’s apartment, watching Cops on tv. It was early December now, but still no snow on the ground. Mild temperatures too; one only needed a hooded sweatshirt, or a long-sleeved shirt, to venture outside.

Hux was on the couch, trying his hardest to fix his glasses. Normally he wore contacts, but lately he had been finding that the little discs irritated his eye. So he found his old pair of glasses and was sitting with the little repair kit he’d bought at the store, trying to tighten the tiny screws so that the handles were more firm.

“Huh?”

“You’ve barely said a word all day. And I’ve just asked you the same question like, five times now, and you STILL haven’t answered me.”

“What was the question?”

“I asked you when the last time you had an eye exam was.”

Hux groaned, dropping one of the screws in the process. He bent to pick it up, saying, “I dunno; maybe like, 4 years ago.”

“Well then, MAYBE you need to stop messing with those ancient things and just go get a new pair. You need your eyes checked; likely your prescription has changed.”

Hux rolled his eyes but didn’t respond. Phasma worked as an optometrist assistant, and was always trying to convince him to come into her job for an eye exam. But Hux hated those kind of things; the feeling of somebody leaning over you, looking you directly in the eye for so long ... it all gave him the creeps.

“Come on, Hux, it’ll be fun,” she said now, trying to rally her cause. “We’re running a special this month: you get an eye exam, and either two pairs of glasses, or one pair of glasses and one pair of contacts, all for $100.”

“But I don’t waaaaannna,” Hux whined, putting the glasses down on the table and leaning back into his couch, putting his arm over his eyes. “I hate going to the doctor.”

“It’s not the doctor, it’s the optometrist.”

“Same thing!”

Phasma switched off the tv and got up, yanking on Hux’s arm. “Come on, babe. You don’t even need an appointment, you can just walk in. Hardly anyone comes on Wednesday’s. Plus you can use my discount, so it’ll only come out to like, $80.”

Hux just sighed and nodded, knowing that it was useless to resist. “Fine. Are you gonna drive me, then?”

“Of course! How irresponsible would I be to let a blind man drive himself?”

—

Phasma had been correct; almost nobody was in the office. Hux filled out the paperwork then sat in one of the little blue chairs, waiting to be called while Phasma chatted with one of her co-workers.

He picked up a magazine and squinted at it, when suddenly, a voice from behind startled him:

“It’s two for two now.”

“Ben? What in the world are you doing here?”

Ben sat beside him, grinning. “Figured it was about time to get the eyes checked. Been having headaches lately. Normally I wear glasses just when I read, but I’m thinking maybe I need to wear them all the time. What about you?”

Hux explained to Ben his own eye situation, when suddenly, Phasma was in front of them. Even blurry, Hux could see that she was grinning from ear to ear.

“Oh ... Phasma, this is Ben Solo. I’m sure you remember him; I bumped him at the bar last month.”

_And at his job ... AND at the restaurant; not that you need to know about THAT, though._

Phasma extended her hand. “Of course I remember. Nice to see you again.”

“Likewise. Are you getting an exam too?”

Phasma explained to him how she worked here, and had driven Hux.

“You work HERE?”, Ben asked, his face a charming mask of disbelief. “Really? You’re so tall and pretty I thought maybe you were a model or something.”

Phasma blushed. “Oh my God that’s so sweet! Thank you!”

A lady came out of the door to the right, and called Hux’s name. Hux stood up, and said, “I’ll be back. Try not to have too much fun, okay?”

—

It turned out Phasma has been correct; Hux’s eyesight had become much worse. Finding the correct glass for his eyes, and seeing through it, was like looking at a whole new world, for Hux. For comparison, the doctor showed him the level his current prescription was at, and how much it differed from the new one.

“Okay; all done. Now you go out there, pick out the style of glasses you want, and they’ll be ready for pick up in 3-5 business days.”

When Hux went out, Phasma was nowhere to be seen. Neither was Ben.

“Oh — Hux?”, the girl behind the desk asked, coming up to him as he stood at the frame counter. “Phasma said to tell you that something came up, and she had to leave, but she said that man, um, Ben, agreed to drive you home after he’s done with his appointment.”

_Phasma ... seriously??_

Just what in the hell had Ben SAID to her?

Hux sighed and thanked the girl, before picking out his frames and filling out the order form for them. Then he sat, having no choice but to wait for Ben.

When Ben came out, his look of relief was almost comical.

“Ah, you’re still here! I thought for sure you’d take off somewhere.”

“Kinda hard to, when my apartment is like five miles away, and I didn’t even bring money for the bus.”

Hux waited while Ben picked out his frames and filled out the form, and then the two were out of there, walking out to the parking lot.

“So ... just to be absolutely clear, Ben; if I tell you where I live, you’re not going to like, stalk me or something, are you?”

Ben laughed as they reached his car, unlocking the doors for them.

“Yep. Totally. I’ll be standing in your closet naked at 3am, trying on your clothes and shit.”

Hux paused with his hand on the passenger side door, not entirely sure that Ben was joking.

“Relax, I’m kidding. Give me some credit, here; I know where you work, and I’ve never shown up there, have I?”

Hux sighed and nodded, finally getting into the car. It smelled incredibly pleasant inside of the vehicle, and it took Hux a few seconds to realize that it was because it smelled Iike Ben himself.

Hux gave Ben his address, as well as basic directions of how to get there, and the two took off into the late afternoon.

It was awkwardly quiet for a while, with Hux not liking the situation and Ben afraid to try and talk to him, before Hux cleared his throat and asked, conversationally, 

“So you don’t work today?”

The tense set of Ben’s shoulders gave way a bit, and Hux could tell that Ben was relieved that he’d spoken first.

“Nope. Most of the time I only work Thursday’s through Sundays, with extra thrown in if we’re short-staffed or have an event coming up or something.”

Now he glanced over at Hux and said, “Actually, I was thinking of starting doing delivery work, like Door Dash, as a part time gig. I need to make some extra money before the spring.”

“Why? What happens in spring?”

“Well, I was planning on enrolling in school.”

“Really?”, Hux asked, surprised. Ben didn’t strike him as being the school type at all. “What school?”

“Just the community one, that big building downtown. It won’t be full time; I just need to finish up some credits so I can finally get my degree.”

“What’s your degree in?”

“It’ll be a Bachelor of Science degree, with a concentration on Computer sciences.”

“Wow,” Hux said, still a bit in awe. “So you’re smart-smart, huh?”

“Not really; just for computer-y stuff. In any other area I’m dumb as fuck.”

“No, you’re not. But can I ask why you didn’t just go all the way and get this degree your first time around in school? I’m going to guess you first went in your twenties? But now you’re like my age, around 30-ish?”

“I’m 29, actually. But you’re right; I did go first in my 20’s. But, um, well I dropped out when my grandpa got sick, to take care of him.”

“Really?”

“Mm hm. He needed round the clock care, 24 hours a day. Bathing, feeding, medications, everything. Mom and dad couldn’t do it because they both worked full-time, and hiring a nurse would have been too expensive.”

“That’s ... I don’t know if I could have done that. You’re a brave one, Ben.”

Ben smiled and shook his head. They were close to Hux’s apartment now.

“Not brave. Just ... I loved my grandpa. But anyway, I took care of him ‘til he passed, and then I was going to go back to school, but then dad died, and I needed to help out mom.”

“And you don’t call that being brave?” Hux asked, shaking his head. “Jesus ... I know I couldn’t keep myself together like that, if I experienced two major deaths back to back like that. I couldn’t even keep it together when my mom died.”

They had reached Hux’s apartment, and Ben pulled into a space in front of the building, letting the car idle.

“Your mom died? I’m sorry.”

“Me, too. She was the best. She was the first one I ‘came out’ to, and she made me feel so comforted and loved ...”

Here he paused and chuckled a bit, pushing a stray lock of hair behind his ear. “I tried to get that with my dad, too, but whooo boy. He reacted like ... like I had just told him that I murdered babies, or something.”

Ben nodded, the expression on his face conveying sympathy and understanding.

_This guy ..._

But no; no no no.

_For all you know, Hux, Phasma told Ben about your mother dying, so he just made up a story first-have about his grandpa and dad dying, so that he could get into your head. Remember what I told you: stop being a fucking idiot. Get away. NOW._

“Thank you so much for the ride, Ben,” Hux said briskly, opening up his door and stepping out. “I’ll see you around, Okay?”

Ben nodded, that disappointed look back on his face. “No problem,” he said, softly. “See ya.”

— —

The day finally came, about a week before Christmas, when the book that Hux had been on the waiting list for arrived. So he waited until his day off, donned his new (and 100% crystal clear) glasses, and drove to the bookstore.

On the one hand, he was legitimately excited to get this book. But on the other, he was legitimately nervous, about seeing Ben. It was a Friday afternoon, so he knew that he’d be working. He hadn’t seen Ben since the day he’d driven Hux home from the eye doctor, and he felt somewhat badly, about how abruptly he’d gotten out of the car.

_Well ... I’ll just casually stop over at the cafe counter, to say Hi. See how he’s doing and all. Nothing wrong with being friendly, is there?_

So Hux first stopped to pick up his book (taking the time to inhale the crisp freshness of new pages, a smell that he loved), then headed to the back of the store.

But when he got there, he was met with a sight so unexpected that it stopped him in his tracks, and he quickly ducked behind one of the towering shelves, hiding himself to get a better look.

Ben appeared to be on break; another guy was currently behind the counter. Ben was sitting at one of the tables, laughing and chatting away ... with a _guy_.

A really cute guy, at that.

As Hux watched, the stranger continually reached out to touch Ben’s arm, leaning towards him attentively while he spoke. Even from here, Hux could tell that the guy was very clearly flirting with Ben.

 _Well ... this is good!_ , Hux thought to himself, as he slowly turned and walked back towards the store entrance. _Looks like he finally got the confidence to talk to someone. This is good; now he won’t be pestering YOU whenever you see him._

He was almost to the door, when from behind, he heard the familiar “Hux!”

Fuck ... why did Hux’s heart leap in his chest like that, hearing Ben’s voice?

He turned around, putting a smile on his face, and said, “Oh, hey, Ben. Long time no see.”

“Yeah. I see you finally got your book,” Ben replied, gesturing to the bag on Hux’s arm.

“Yep.”

“I’m glad I caught you; mom doesn’t want this to get out yet, in case it falls through, but as of right now, guess who’s going to be coming here to do a book signing on January 3rd?”

“Not ... not Stephen King?!”

Ben nodded, grinning. “Yes! Mom told me, and I thought of you right away. So I was going to ask, if I can swing it, do you want me to see if mom will let you come in early-early on that day, so you can meet King before the crowds get here?”

Hux’s eyes widened in disbelief. “Really? You could do that?”

Ben nodded. “Yeah. I’ve heard that Mr. King is pretty chill about that kind of thing, so it shouldn’t be a problem.”

Hux’s mind was reeling. A chance to meet his favorite author, alone, in a one on one setting? 

But suddenly, he remembered the incident from a few minutes ago, and couldn’t help but say,

“Well, maybe you should be asking your other friend instead?”

“Huh?”, Ben asked, looking confused. “What other friend?”

“I was passing by the cafe counter, and I saw you taking to some guy. He looked pretty cozy with you.”

“Some guy? Who ... oh, you mean Jeff? The blonde with the piercings?”

Hux nodded.

“Oh, that guy ... I knew him in high school. Today’s the first time I’ve seen him in almost 10 years. We were just catching up.”

_Ben ... don’t you understand, that Jeff was flirting with you? Everything about his body language said so. Do you still not understand your own appeal?_

Or maybe, just maybe ... Hux’s brain had created a scenario that didn’t exist. That he had automatically interpreted it as being one way, when the reality was far more innocent.

But WHY was this the case?

And WHY did Hux feel such overwhelming relief, upon hearing that Jeff was just Ben’s friend?

“What time do you get off today?”

“Er, around 9, maybe 9:30. Why?”

“Do you, maybe, want to go out to eat somewhere, when you’re off? With ... with me?”

Ben’s eyes became so big that they took up half of his face, and it took him a few moments to be able to open his mouth and say, “R-really?”

Hux nodded. He dug in his pocket and found a pen, then took his new book, opened the cover, and tore out the blank front page. Using the book as a makeshift table, he began writing across the top.

“Here’s my number,” he said when he was done, holding the paper out to the stunned-looking Ben. “Apartment and cell. If for some reason I don’t answer my cell, try the apartment one. Call me when you’re done, and we can figure out a place to meet up. Okay?”

“Okay!”, Ben exclaimed, just a bit too loudly. Seeing that some customers were looking at him, he quickly resigned himself in, before continuing, quieter, “I’ll be looking forward to it.”

“Me, too,” Hux said, giving him a genuine smile before turning and leaving the euphoric-looking Ben behind him.

When he reached his car, he looked up in surprise; it was actually snowing. Tiny white crystals came whizzing down, landing in Hux’s outstretched hand.

 _Gonna have to dress a bit warmer, for your date tonight, Hux,_ he told himself, still smiling as he got into his car and drove home.

9 o’clock couldn’t come fast enough.


End file.
